


Things Change

by AlsendDrake



Category: Ranma 1/2
Genre: Other
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2019-09-09
Updated: 2020-09-11
Packaged: 2020-10-13 12:55:21
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 4
Words: 6,264
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/20582849
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/AlsendDrake/pseuds/AlsendDrake
Summary: After the failed wedding, things in Nerima seem to be changing from the status quo. With this, and a shake up at school, with a new principal and teacher, Ranma finds himself in a situation he never expected: learning how to resolve his seemingly unending problems and have as normal a life as he can.





	1. New Teacher, New Furinkan

**Author's Note:**

> Im working on this to try to work on a character, in the case of any inaccuracies from canon, my answer is "A Wizard Did It" :P

It was strange, it was almost like the wedding, albeit failed, changed something. The raw madness, the anger of Nodoka, or something cause an upheaval in the tentative balance Nerima had sat upon for a long while. Ranma mused upon the changes as he walked to school. Ryoga seemed less eager to charge him. Akane seemed a bit less trigger happy, although only a bit, Shampoo seemed a bit pushed in her pursuit now, and Uchan seems to have been acting almost... sisterly.

"Uagh!" he shouts out in surprise as he becomes a she with a splash of water from the ladle lady. "Aw, come on! We're already late, and I'd really rather go to school as a guy!" Ranma complains about the surprise splashing. Resisting the urge to snap back, Akane looks at the redhead.

"You haven’t gotten hit by her in ages. Is... something wrong?" Ranma seems a bit surprised at Akane actually asking something like that.

"I've just been... dwelling on the changes since... ya know." the redhead admits after a moment. "Everyone's been acting different... things are calmer... it's almost nice. So of course I'm on edge, y'know." the young martial artist admits. "Look, we made it. Come on!" she runs ahead, leaving Akane to watch for a moment before following.

The two are as surprised as their classmates when they get into class and see someone decisively NOT their childlike teacher. "Ah, Mr. Saotome, Ms. Tendo, glad to see you two made it on time. Mr. Saotome, would you like some hot water? I have a thermos somewhere... ah, here it is!" she finds it under the desk and offers it.

"Uh... Thanks... but, how did..." Ranma just holds the bottle in her hand dumbly.

"Know of the curse? Well, it's not exactly a well-kept secret. Additionally, even if it were, it's known to the faculty of the school, and as thus was shared with me. Beyond that, I've had some experience with those cursed by Jusyenko. a few of my friends have fallen, quote unquote, prey, to the waters. Some almost happy, some... less so." the woman gestures. "Well? It won’t keep hot enough forever." this startles Ranma who quickly uses a little of the water.

"Thanks for that, but... where's Ms. Hinako?"

"Funny you should ask; I was just waiting for everyone to address that." The students all move to their seats. "So, first, I do have the pleasure to announce that Principle Kuno has been removed from his position. Hopefully his replacement can help turn this school around. As for Ms. Hinako, word is someone discovered a way to properly help her condition, and she accepted the aid, although it unfortunately required her to move closer to the person, and as such she has left the country. I will be taking over as your teacher. You may call me Mrs. Ryukin" the new woman spoke. In this time the class got a better look at the new teacher as she seemed to be beyond a first glance which showed the woman, appearing to be in her mid-20's, shared a number of features with Ranma's cursed form. Red hair, athletic body, similar eyes, but there were also noticeable changes, the biggest of which being she was not Japanese. While it was not possible to tell by sight, she was definitely European, though as she spoke flawless Japanese, it was hard to tell where she came from.

After the day's classes, Ranma was stopped at the door. "You're not in trouble, Mr. Saotome, I just wished to discuss something with you. You may go on, Miss Tendo. Akane looks to Ranma as she is ushered out with the rest of the class. Once the door is closed, the new teacher turns to the teenaged martial artist. "So, Mr. Saotome, I noticed how you seemed uninterested in today's subject"

"I thought you said I wasn't in trouble." He started to protest.

"And you aren't. While I may be one for discipline in class, I want to be sure my students are getting the most out of it all. I've seen your type before, Ranma. I've heard of what you can do."

"What I can do?" he blinks.

"You see a move a time or two and can copy it. That adaptability and memory are rarely heard of. Your troubles in school aren’t because you can't do it, but rather there's no drive TO do it. Honestly, I'd expect if your mother had been there to keep that idiotic panda in check, you'd be a far more well-rounded individual."

"If... how much of my past do you know?!" Ranma stammers out.

"You'd be surprised how much goes around, seeing as every time a bit of your past comes out, something in Nerima ends up smashed." the teacher chuckles. "Plus, your potential is why I was sent here."

"You were sent here... because of me? By... by who?"

"Funny you ask, as he actually accompanied me. He's the one who took over that coconut loony's position. You can call him Mr. Ka'Yala. Incidentally, with the new management, that Kuno boy will get away with much less."

"That's nice and all, but why the interest in me?"

"I understand your mistrust from the stories I've heard. Every time some new person shows up with knowledge of you and what you've gotten swept up in, things tend to get even crazier. Especially when it's a redhead" she jokes, twirling some of her long hair around her finger. "I'll assure you that the fiery red hair has nothing to do with you, it runs in my family. My mother and father both have it, as do my two brothers." She chuckles as Ranma lets out the breath he hadn't even realized he'd been holding. "Mr. Ka'Yala is my boss. It was a combination of his and my father’s know how and connections that got us here to try and help such an extraordinary young man such as yourself. A mind like yours that learns so well is quite rare, and we would hate it to be wasted as the meal ticket for some lazy panda man. Therefore, we underwent all this to get me here. I've had experience with situations like yours. I was once similarly stunted due to a bad teacher until my father took over my teaching, and now I'm here to help you. Hinako did her best, but sometimes one needs a specialist."

"So... you're here... to help me?"

"Well, this is also good for me. Sometimes learning to teach can teach you more than learning from a teacher. Oh geez, that was a bit to wrap one's mind around" she laughed. "Anyways, all I ask is you give this all a chance. Do your best to keep up with classes, and we'll see how it all goes" she stands up and walks to the door. "Anyways, I think I've kept you long enough. It's about time to get going." she gave a small smile and opened the door for Ranma. Once outside with the door closed, he spotted Akane down the hall.

"Yo, Akane, thanks for waiting up!" he jogs down the hall to her, as she turns and cocks an eyebrow.

"Waiting up? I was going to meet you at the exit. Thought it'd be a few minutes, but seems it was just something small. Probably told ya to stay awake, I bet." she teased.

"Uh... something kinda like that." Confusion showing on his face, Ranma looked back at the door. That talk had definitely taken longer than that... hadn't it? Despite her reassurances, Ranma still had a bad feeling that things were going to get weird again. Just WHO was their teacher, and what just happened?


	2. Schoolyard Changes

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> The new principle is introduced, and two of Nerima's Wrecking Crew find out how serious he takes his new rules on keeping the school more normal.
> 
> Akane meets a possible mentor.

This likely may be a bit around, tried to sneak this one in between college hw. Stayed up a bit later than I anted to crank this one out, but hey, when I am so damn slow to write... XD  
Got multiple classes that act like they're your only class, and wanted to get back into doing some stuff before I get dragged into the pit of flipping between homework an Kingdom Hearts as 1.5+2.5 is FINALLY coming to Xbox One XD

Hopefully enjoy!

\------

Akane was getting worried. Ranma had been very quiet ever since the previous day. she had TRIED to ask him about it but he didn't even seem to answer. Suddenly, the young martial artist gives out a yell, making Akane jump. "I just dont get it!" The boy bemoans, hopping down from the fence.

"You don't get what, Ranma?" she asked. Maybe she'd be getting answers anyways.

"Yesterday! I could've sworn I was talking to the new teach for a good amount of time, but then it's actually such a small amount of time?! How did she do it?!"

"You don't think it's some 'Ancient Amazon Technique'" Akane imitates the voice of the amazon matriarch.

"Oh, kami I HOPE not! I don't need ANY more amazon insanity in my life!" he pauses and looks at the girl. "It's almost weird, not constantly bickering, you know." he admits, looking towards the fence.

"What, you trying to start something?" her usual temper flaring for a moment, even before his words register. "You... you're right. It is, but... it's kind of nice, not fighting..." she agrees. The two quietly make their way to school, but are met at the door by a strong looking woman with electric blue hair.   
"There's an assembly occurring, I've been asked to stand here and let people know to make their way to the gymnasium" she gestures down the hall. The two teens make their way to the gym, wondering what was going on.

"I hope it's not some more craziness." Ranma mutters, and Akane silently agrees.

\---

In the large room, the school has gathered, with curriosity of what was going to happen. Ranma could pick out worries about Principle Kuno pulling something else again, and realized that this may be announcing the new principle, and that they had gotten word earlier due to their teacher. Everyone's attention is drawn one of the teachers moving to the stage. The redheaded European woman smiles. "Hello everyone! I'm sure you're all worried this will be another crazy announcement from coconut head, but I can assure you it's not! In fact, I have some very happy news! I'm sure most of you don't recognize me, which makes sense, seeing as I'm a new teacher here. You can all call me Mrs. Ryukin! But we're not here for little ol' me. I would like you all to meet the man who brought me to work here, a good friend of mine, and a big fan of theatrics! PRINCIPAAAAAAAL KA'YALA!" a curtain is pulled back as a man emerges, his hair black with tinges of silver running through it, a smile on his face as confetti falls from the ceiling. Looking over the students, who seem scared at this, the man chuckles.

"Oops, guess I did overdo it a bit" he chuckles. "After having to put up with that Hawaii fanboy idiot for so long I can understand how that all may have spooked you, but do not fear! I'm mostly sane, just enjoy a bit of fun now and then. But yes, I will be your new principle from here on out, as Kuno has been put on... Executive leave. As in the executives told him to leave after word got to them about his actions." This got a few chuckles from students. "Anyways, I wanted to inform everyone that with him gone, the traditional insanity that has plagued this school will not be tolerated any longer. That means martial arts challenges on school grounds, mid-lunch interruptions, and other such things will be cracked down on. Now, that's all for today, I know it's a big thing to get everyone here for something so short, but I'm sure you're all simply DYING to return to your classes, right?" This elicits another chuckle.

\---

Things were rather calm until lunch, a far cry from Nerima's normal pace, until the sound of bells could be heard, and a familiar, dreaded voice. "Nihao, Airen! Shampo come to- ack!" she's cut off from her greeting as she crashes into someone who doesn't even seem to budge.

"Miss Xian Pu, what are you doing here?" The blue-haired woman from before asks, standing over the Chinese girl.

"Who you? Why you stop Shampoo from greeting Airen?"

"Name's Akina, and you're not supposed to be here. You're not a student, and you haven't signed in as a guest. That means you're a trespasser. Seeing as you don't have any real excuse, I will have to ask you to leave, or I will have to remove you."

"You no stop Shampoo! I go see Airen!" she tries to jump over the woman, only to be surprised as she feels two strong hands grab onto her ankles. "What? You let go of Shampoo right now!" the Chinese girl protests as the woman brings her down into a crushing bear hug, actually restraining the girl successfully, as Shampoo kicks futilely as she's carried away.

"That was... strange to watch." Akane watched the strong-looking woman carry the amazon off the school property. Something about the woman bothered her.

"Akane, is it just me, or does she seem a similar build to you?"

"Wha?!" She turns, surprised as Ranma speaks up. "How so?" She blushed a bit, as she thought the woman looked rather nice as well as strong.

"'Ya know, built like a brick." He missed the sudden twist of the girl's face into rage, only spared the mallet because he kept talking. "But there's also a kind of femininity too. Like, she's strong, but certainly not a guy."

"You're such an idiot sometimes, Ranma." she grumbled, but restrained herself from hitting him. Somehow. Those who saw this ere unnerved. Ranma had just stuck his foot in his mouth and even complemented someone else... but WASN'T malleted? Had hell frozen over?

\---

"Miss Tendo, can I speak with you before class?" That same woman met with Akane as she came out from the changing room for gym. "It'll only be a minute. The rest of you girls start on a warm-up jog!"

"What do you think you are, our gym teacher!" one of the particularly snarky (and likely brave, yet dumb) girls piped up.

"Why yes I do. Know why? Because I AM the gym teacher! Now get moving!" She yells, and leads Akane into another room. "Now, Miss Tendo. I'm rather new at this school, as you can assume. I take it you've met and talked to Mrs. Ryukin, correct? An that Ranma talked a bit about what was said?"

"Er... yes, but why are you asking?"

"The reason I ask is a similar reason. Ri- er, Mrs. Ryukin as brought in because she's likely the best person who can help Nerima's resident crazy equine. I was brought in because I can help you get over your little anger problem."

"I do NOT have an anger problem!" Akane yells, not even knowing she had manifested and swung her mallet until the older woman caught the Ranma-punting sin quite easily. Seeing this, her face paled a bit.

"As you can see, you do have one, Miss Tendo. A rather bad one, if I may say so myself. And that's why Mr. Ka'yala brought me along to. Like your fiancé, you have potential. Potential your anger and pride are preventing you from achieving. You will be meeting with me at scheduled times to work through your anger issues, and if those go well, I may be able to help your technique."

"You... you could?!"

"Yes. As you likely have deduced, I'm a rather skilled martial artist myself. From what I've gathered, despite your potential, you're mostly little more than a brawler due to lack of training and temper control. I can change that. IF you can succeed in controlling that temper. Losing control is not something you ant to do when you have the capability to seriously harm innocents. Do we understand?"

Akane for some reason couldn't even get angry, though she wasn't sure if it was due to shock or actually considering this woman's words. "Y-yes... ma'am."

"Good. You can just call me Mrs. Akina. Now, let us get to class."

\---

At the same time, a familiar battle cry was heard on the boy's side of the gym. "RANMA SAOTOME! PREPARE TO DIE!" Ryoga charge at Ranma, having wandered back into ton, but was suprised as he ran into someone that had somehow not been noticed. Ryoga was momentarily confused by this, as he looked back and forth between the male Ranma and this red-haired woman.

"Mr. Hibiki, you are not to fight with Ranma on school grounds or during school hours, by decree of the new principle." The new teacher didn't seem to have any fear of the pig-cursed as well as headed boy. "If you wish, you can come wait in the office with Mr. Ka'yala until you can face Mr. Saotome in a more proper venue. AFTER school."

"Look, lady, I don't care what some principle says! I'm going to get revenge on Saotome for the hell he forced me through!" He tries to push past the woman, but instead finds himself on the receiving end of a judo throw.

"No, Mr. Hibiki. You are to wait in the office. With Mr. Ka'yala. Understand?" she watches the boy jump up, now focused on her.

"Stay out of our business, lady! This is a fight between men, for our honor!" The teacher looked about done with his antics.

"This is your last chance, Hibiki. You are to wait. In the office. With Mr. Ka'yala. If you do not come with me now, I will be forced to take you there myself."

"Fine, if I have to fight you to get to Saotome, then so be it!" Ryoga gets ready to fight, but is surprised to find her... missing? "Er... yeah! run away now I can fight Saotome in... HEY!" he finds his feet lifted from the ground, as the petite woman wraps her arms around him from behind and picks him up "You can fight... AFTER school." she seems to look past the lost boy towards the trees before... vanishing, Hibiki boy in her grip and all.

In the trees, the amazon matriarch stares at the location the woman had been in. The woman who's Ki seemed... wrong. The woman who seemed to appear out of nowhere in front of the Hibiki boy. The woman who had vanished in not a surge of Ki marking a martial arts technique, but a burst of mana. A woman who had STARED DIRECTLY AT HER HIDDEN POSITION EVEN DESPITE THE MULTIPLE STEALTH TECHNIQUES SHE WAS USING.

Kuh Lon had come to look into the changes around the school after Shampo was manhandled by the freakishly strong gym teacher. But now... now she had other worries.

Like what an honest to goodness WIZARD was doing in Nerima.


	3. Enter the Wizard! Phase 1 Complete?

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> A bit shorter. Was gonna do this later on, but just kinda started writing and this happened, and it's late and I just anna put something out to hopefully get me to keep working on things more. Trying to break out of a block. Enjoy!
> 
> And Also going a bit faster than I had originally thought, as I wanna shorten this down to open a slot to get on the main big project I've had in mind for a LONG time now!

Ryoga looked around in confusion as he was suddenly lost again. But... he had just been grabbed by the woman; he had never gotten lost without moving before! Oh, god, was his curse getting worse?

"Calm down, Mr. Hibiki." He turns to face the redhead. "You didn't get lost, so you can stop panicking. I simply brought you to the principal’s office to cool down, you think you can keep him from getting lost, Boss?" Ryoga looks to the man behind the counter as said man looks at him thoughtfully.

"May be tricky to keep a Hibiki from getting lost or wandering off, but I'll do my best." He chuckles. Rika smiles, knowing he was underplaying his capabilities. A LOT. "Great, I've got someone to visit before classes. You've got my backup plans in case it runs long."

"Oh, the Amazon? Do please tell the tale tonight, I know we both would love to hear about you getting to toy with an Amazon Matriarch." the new principle just grins. "Good luck." Rika just smiles.

"I always do with your aid, Boss." she says before vanishing.

He had not moved an inch, and Ryoga STILL felt lost. And seeing the glare of the Principle, a little scared too.

"So, YOU'RE Mr. Hibiki..."

Make that a LOT scared.

\----------------------

Shampoo was rather upset at having been thrown out from visiting her Airen. How dare that woman do such a thing! In her thoughts, she never even realized someone was there. "Oh! Shampoo too-too sorry miss! Welcome to Nekohatten, what can Shampoo get for you?" She gives the woman a big smile. For some reason, this woman made her think of her Airen, though that may just be the red hair.

<"No need to use such rough Japanese, young warrior"> The new red-haired instructor at Fuyrinkin replied in Mandarin. <"Though you really should get it right soon.">

<"Oh! You know Chinese! This is much easier! Not too common to meet people I can communicate with easily!">

<"Ah, yes, second languages can be tough, and that's if you have a knack for it. It gets way harder otherwise! Anyways, is Khu Lon in? I wish to speak with her.">

<"Great-Grandmother went to investigate new teacher at the school after my visit.">

<"Ah, yes. I would recommend signing in next time. Ka'Yala is rather strict on that!">

<"Wait, who's Ka'Yala? Isn't the Kuno man in charge?">

<"Nah, not anymore. Kuno's old man got canned. Ka'yala is in charge now. Also, don't try to get revenge on Akina. It wouldn't go well for you, I promise.">

<"Akina?"> Shampoo repeats, staring blankly in confusion.

<"The girl with electric blue hair who kicked you out, of course.">

<"What?! You know of that?!">

Before the two could continue, Rika turned to the door. <"Your Great-Grandmother is back. You go clean up and all, I need to talk with her."> As soon as she says this, Cologne enters, and stops, staring at the teacher for a moment before speaking.

"What brings you to our establishment, young wizard?" She asks. Rika just smirks.

<"Do not feel the need to use Japanese. I am fluent in many languages, Mandarin included. As for why I'm here, you likely know his name. Ranma Saotome."> Cologne raises an eyebrow at the woman's decision to use Mandarin. <"I figured Xian Pu would listen in, so thought I'd do you the kindness of talking in this language for her sake... And maybe to minimize the spread of this information."> She chuckles lightly, as if her doing Cologne a kindness is a joke or something.

<"Very well, then young wizard, what is it-">

<"Rika."> She cuts Cologne off.

<"Excuse me?">

<"Name's Rika. Easier than using 'young wizard' and may even save ‘ya some embarrassment."> She gives Cologne a cocky smirk.

<"Very well, Rika. What is it you want with Son-In-Law?">

<"Ranma. His name's Ranma. Far as I can tell, only thing keepin' him and Akane apart is her temper and the fiancée crew. As it is, boss has a vested interest in things going well for the boy. And with you snooping about, figured you'd be the first obstacle to overcome."> Cologne narrows her eyes.

<"Overcome? Careful, young one, you're a hundred years too-">

<"Early to challenge 'ya. Yeah, yeah. I know that line, Khu Lon. I also happen to know something you don't.">

<"And what is-"> Suddenly the woman was in her face with a surge of mana, having seemingly teleported. With her so close, Cologne could FEEL the pure mana the girl seemed to emit as she gave her widest cat-like grin. <"-that?">

<"If anyone is a hundred years too early to challenge in here, it's you... young one."> And with another surge, strong enough to momentarily blind the Elder's mana sense, she was gone. The surge, however, was large and close enough for her to identify it. She felt a heavy weight fall in her stomach as she realized just what kind of wizard was apparently standing on Ranma's side and now opposed their claim. Chronomancy. A Time Wizard. The most dangerous and chaotic of the schools of magic, and if the woman's words were to be believed, she was significantly older than even Cologne herself, which only made her even more dangerous. They may have to move to their final play immediately. Their plans before that would risk angering the newcomer, so they needed to act quickly. Cologne called to Shampoo.

<"Xian. We need to advance our plans. Time to prepare the challenge.">

<"Are you sure, Great Grandmother? Airen killed Saffron!">

<"I have a few tricks up my sleeve, Granddaughter. Do not worry. I am confident we can make it airtight and I can handle Son-In-Law."> Neither amazon even noticed a presence still lurking as they go into the back room, and a woman with electric blue hair fades into view, a plain ring with a thin line glowing around it in her hand having just been removed.

"I swear, you two and your love of old stories" Akina shakes her head at the design Rika and Ka'Yala had come up with for the ring. Cheesy or not though, it worked. "Time to report in." The ring seems to vanish in her closed fist, and she heads towards Fyrinkin High.

\------------------

Ka'Yala beams, the two women having filled him in on everything that went down after they had ensured Ryoga was in a getting-lost-proof room.

"Excellent! We've moved the Amazon's plans up. This should allow the chaos plaguing the subjects to lessen once dealt with. Any changes that could risk a different wording of the letter?"

"Not as I'm aware, sir. Their actions matched what you saw." Akina nods.

"That's tremendous! This is going even better than I could have hoped! You two keep helping the Saotome pair, and I'll see what I can do about the Kunos and Ryoga. After that Ukyo is the only one who could cause any real issues, and if we're to that point, we'll be sitting pretty. Once they challenge Ranma by specifying his parents and birthdate, our Primary Objective will be secure. Good work, my Paladins." He beams, standing as his form shifts. He grows taller, his suit shifting to allow a second pair of arms as his body grows fur, his head seeming to blur as two ghostly afterimages come into being, following his motions. Where once stood Principle Ka'Yala, a normal, if a bit fun-loving, principle now stood Ka'Yala, the Rakshasa Deity of Time and Luck. "Shall I be able to interest you two in a celebration at the Red Dragon Inn? We can observe one of their famous drinking games, and I can tell you to about the Ichizai girl!"

"Kinda on the nose, huh?" Rika smiles, giving an eye-roll.

"Completely coincidental, Rika! Though your father WAS the one who got me hooked on their games!" Akina tosses her arm over the shorter woman's shoulder.

"Sounds great! Could we go there one of the times Zot left Pooky alone! It's always so fun to watch something so cute just tear things to shreds!" the bluette gave a goofy grin the redhead soon shared, which also quickly infected the deity as well.

"Sounds good! Let us go!" A portal opened, and the trio stepped in, and vanished.


	4. Meeting your mentor's friends: Aki and Jiāo!

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> A meeting with some of Rika's friends
> 
> Meanwhile, the final battle with the Amazons approach.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Shorter than I'd intended, but kept delaying and decided to just go and put this out to try and get myself going again still. College starting to get rolling and gotta hold out another few weeks until work schedule adjusts.
> 
> No, this is not a time travel fix-it fic, more of an alternate timeline tinkering thing. And I will warn you, the story I'm trying to finish this to start, as I'm trying to make myself finish stuff before starting even more things now, will involve some stuff that shows up here, so spoilers for that one, I guess. IDK. I just know it's late af, and ill likely suffer tomorrow, but I got this posted so weeeeeeee!

It had been a few weeks, the weeks had been rather nice actually. Very little had been heard from the Amazons, which is always good, and Ranma and Akane had been getting along. The two had started staying after school to meet with the new teachers, which had also resulted in less run-ins with the Kunos as well as Genma, and the two ha learn about their new teachers and mentors. Rika had told him a bit about her family. How her dad had helped her catch up in school when she had fallen behind. Her brother who had taught her how to play a type of game that involved pretending to be someone else. That idea was very appealing to Ranma. A chance to escape his issues, even for a bit and relax? That sounded great! Meanwhile, Akane was taught the steps the blue-haired gym teacher had been taught. Taught that comparing oneself to another is often unfair to yourself. That you often get too focused on one thing you miss all your other advantages, but it's a hard balance, as one can also OVER focus on their advantages.

Eventually, this had led to the two being offered to celebrate their progress. a whole two weeks of calm. Something most take for granted but was nothing short of a miracle. When they arrived at the restaurant, they noticed a few people neither had seen before talking with Rika, Akina, and Ka'Yala. One was a Chinese woman with dark black hair, though it lightened near the roots suggesting hair coloring. The other person, however, stood out more. He had a mess or dirty blonde hair, but from that hair was a pair of fox ears. The two teens noticed everyone had turned to them. "Ranma, Akane! You two are here! These two are some of our friends! They may be able to give some insight into some ways to help alleviate some issues, I'll let them introduce themselves!" Ka'Yala smiles as the teens sit, the woman beaming.

"Ni-hao!" Ranma flinches. "Oh, right, sorry about that, Ka'Yala told us of your Amazon issue. No worries, I am no Amazon! Those laws of theirs I've heard of..." She shudders. "Those are just SO stupid! Anyways, my name is Jiāo jīn! I am from China originally, but I've been in Japan for the last... oh, what's it been, 15 years now, my Airen?" She smiles to the fox-eared man. Ranma manages to keep from flinching this time. Geez, the Amazons had really conditioned him. "Anyways, I have personal experience in dealing with people with unrealistic delusions, so I may be able to give you some tips to deal with the Kuno siblings." She beams.

"And I'm Aki." The man beside her smiles, but just then, a passing waiter tripped, a glass of water sailing right at Ranma. Akane tries to warn him, but before she can the man vanishes, moving in the blink of an eye, and snatching the cup from the air and keeping the water from hitting the cursed teen using a napkin. Holding the cup it over his head triumphantly he smiles to the teens, as they see he does indeed have a tail too. "Yep, I still..." SPLASH! the water from the currently upside-down cup splashed on the man, and a moment later, a woman, still with fox ears and tail, is slightly hunched over, her long blonde hair drenched. "Got it... Damn it! so close..." She grumbles.

"You have a Juseynko curse?! But wait... how'd 'ya have the fox stuff as a guy too?" Aki trudges back to her seat, Jiāo using a towel to help dry her off, fussing over her.

"Well, I DID say I knew people with curses" Rika smirks. "And you thought I was lying hm?"

"What? I didn't say that!" Ranma protests.

"Don't worry about it, Ranma. Yeah, I've had the magic on me for... oh geez, longer than I've even known Jiāo. As for the ears... Funny story, but would you believe at first the fox stuff was the only part I really disliked due to the attention it drew, but after a while, the ears and tail grew on me enough to find a way to keep ‘em?" Aki smirks at Ranma's expression. "Yeah, my birth name is Adam, though I always liked Aki, more neutral. I've always been an odd one."

"At first, Airen wished he had fallen in the Nyanichuan like one of his friends and you did. Eventually though being a cute foxgirl grew on her enough until she decided to become a cute foxboy as well" Jiāo grins, sritching at Aki's ears.

"Hey! No faiiiirrr..." She starts to complain but then leans into the scritches.

"What do you mean he... she... Aki decided to become a foxboy? How does that even work?" Akane tries to figure it out as Aki gets Jiāo to stop with a quiet promise of later.

"We're getting too focused on Juseynko. Ka'yala brought us here for another reason. We each have experience dealing with types of people, though the positions were different. My best friend is also a bit headstrong and tended to push blame onto another, meaning I may be able to advise you how to diffuse your... Ryoga, was his name?" Ranma nods. "Your Ryoga problem." Jiāo then jumps in.

"And I've had to deal with people who were... obsessive about how they viewed the world. May be able to give some tips to get those Kunos to go way? Dunno if it'll help, as it was a slightly different crazy, but maybe it can help." The group discuss plans of action for Ranma and Akane to try. Soon it's time to leave, and the group starts to part, before loud banging sounds are heard from the kitchen, one of the cooks telling someone to get out, and a woman about Aki and Jiāo's age stumbles out of the kitchen.

Riumi? What're you doing here?" Aki darts over to the woman, who looks up from a device she had been staring at in her hand. She looks up at Aki.

"Huh? Oh! Aki! Hey! Wait... aren't you..." She trails off as she follows the foxgirl's slight nod and seeing Ranma and Akane. Her eyes widen a bit and she hurriedly looks at the device again, her lower lip up a bit. "What? How did... Uh... I... uh..." She glances at the teens again, then Aki, her eyes showing she had no idea what was going on. Aki just shakes her head slightly. "Oh, well. Sorry for interrupting. I may have..." She thinks for a moment. "Bumped into something that sent me here! Yep, I guess there's something around wherever I was that did something weird! Even shorted out my GPS!" She gives a closed-eye grin for a moment before her eyes shoot open, her lips quickly returning to their almost pout.

"I've heard of those! I hope you can get it fixed." Akane smiles as Ka'yala steps in.

"No worries, I keep up to date on technology, and so does Rika. You two head home and we'll help Riumi here out." The adults lead the woman away, neither teen realizing the absence of Aki as they walk home.

"That was odd, wasn't it?" Akane looks to Ranma and seeing his face. "What is it?"

"I dunno if I was seeing things... but did that Riumi girl have a fang-toothed smile?"

"What, you think that could've been Ryoga's mom? That'd be crazy! Too much of a coincidence!"

"Nah, there’s something else... ah, whatever, not like you'd understand."

"What do you mean by that, Idiot?"

"Why should I tell a Tomboy like you?"

"Hmph! Fine then, don’t tell me, pervert" Even as the two go through their paces, no blows are sent towards the boy, and no real hostility is felt.

\--------------------------  
"Is it done?" Cologne looks to Shampoo as her heir pokes her head in. The old woman just nods.

"Yes, child. The letter is written. We shall deliver this to Son-In-Law directly. I recommend you go into his school at lunch and give it directly to him to minimize any risk. You understand this challenge is our last chance, correct?"

"Yes, Great-Grandmother. Shampoo understand. Challenge by Champion last resort."

"Very good, then" Cologne looks at the challenge. Written as simply and exclusively as she could think. The more qualifiers added to the challenge, the greater risk of a loophole ruining everything, and with the middle Tendo around, simple is better. She double checks the wording. Simple and to the point. 'The child born to Genma and Nodoka Saotome on August 19th, 1971' There was no way out of this. Son-In-Law WOULD have to fight her, and she WOULD defeat him and secure him for Shampoo. As much as it hurt to have to take this step, and the humiliation it may bring onto her heir, the alternative was worse.

As Cologne makes sure the challenge is prepared properly, a figure slips away silently through a window, crawling along the wall. Anyone who spotted him would likely just hurry away and not say anything, fearing mentioning it would bring the Nerima weirdness to them. Exactly as he wanted. Now on the ground, the man starts heading towards the school, not even bothering to resume a human form, seeming a kind of cat-fox hybrid. It felt nice getting to stretch his legs in a Japan that wasn't filled with super-people, though he knew he would need to get back to watching over Ichizai after helping his dad with this errand. He thought about how his dad had needed to meet the new Paladin candidates with Rika and Akina there, which was how he found himself spying on the Amazons to ensure the letter was written as predicted. Now the ball was in the Amazon's court to deliver, then Rika's to help Ranma resolve this. He honestly had no clue how it was his dad kept up with micromanaging so many timelines.

And as such, Kane Rywalker, Half-Kitsune son of Ka'Yala made his way to report in then get out of this timeline and return to his own mission.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Got birthdate by taking when the manga started and subtracting 16 years as I couldn't find anything. If you know, let me know


End file.
